


Candle

by igrockspock



Category: Star Trek (2009)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-12-28
Updated: 2009-12-28
Packaged: 2017-10-05 09:29:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/40194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/igrockspock/pseuds/igrockspock
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For this plan, Spock will need a candle</p>
            </blockquote>





	Candle

  
  
  
**Entry tags:** |   
[fic: star trek](http://igrockspock.livejournal.com/tag/fic:+star+trek), [genre: het](http://igrockspock.livejournal.com/tag/genre:+het), [pairing: spock/uhura](http://igrockspock.livejournal.com/tag/pairing:+spock/uhura)  
  
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In the 4 years, 7 months, and 264 days he has lived on Earth, he has avoided human commercial establishments. Shopping for recreation is not a Vulcan past time, and when he has needed goods for his home, he has ordered them from a Vulcan retailer. Now, though, he needs an item which serves no logical purpose, and he must therefore venture into a human store. Not only is the store cluttered with useless objects, its lay-out is highly inefficient, forcing shoppers to wander through cavernous aisles in order to locate the goods they need. Furthermore, the employees seem determined to avoid assisting the clientele. Three times Spock is on the verge of asking for help, and each time the blue-shirted employee dashes away on seemingly urgent business. Not even in his conflicted boyhood has he felt so immersed in illogic. Still, he feels no doubt about the purpose of this endeavor.

After 20 minutes, he locates what he is looking for -- a decorative candle. Many decorative candles, in fact. More varieties than he can count in a single glance, stacked on shelves that span the whole length of the aisle. His research did not prepare him for this dilemma, and he wonders if it would be better to return to his living quarters and send a message to his mother. But he rejected that option when he began his research several weeks ago. Discussing the situation with Amanda would, of course, have been been far more efficient than the hours he has spent watching movies and surreptitiously reading women's magazines, but what he is doing must be done alone. This is perhaps not a logical decision, but what he intends to do is not logical to begin with.

Paradoxically -- but somewhat reassuringly -- logic can be of assistance even in an illogical situation. Like a cartographer mapping a previously uncharted world, he moves systematically down the aisle, surveying each candle carefully. Some are scented while others are not; some are thin, elegant tapers and some are squat but intricately carved pillars. Scented candles might conflict with the flavors of the meal he intends to prepare, he reasons, and even his careful observation has not allowed him to determine what aroma she might prefer. This realization enables him to eliminate a full 51% of the selection. Next, he eliminates the shorter, fatter candles; empirical data from the romantic films he has viewed indicate that long, tapering candles are more frequently employed in romantic dinners than their wider cousins, which appear to be primarily used for decoration. Finally, he settles on two plain, white candles and simple glass holders. They will, he believes, convey the right impression.

Now he is ready for his final task: learning to cook her favorite meal. He believes this task will take 2 to 4 weeks, not very long in comparison to the 6.2 months he has already required to identify his feelings and resolve to act on them. It is, however, potentially long enough for her resistance to Cadet Kirk to crumble. He resolves to learn to cook a bit faster.


End file.
